SAWT BEIRUT INTERNATIONAL

| 29 March 2024, Friday |

Libya delegates fail to agree on basis for December polls

The United Nations said that talks between delegates from war-torn Libya failed to reach deal on a constitutional framework to hold elections as planned in December.

The United Nations Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL) said members at Wednesday’s meeting held via videoconference discussed four proposals, the contents of which were not disclosed.

“A final decision on the constitutional basis” on the constitutional basis for legislative and presidential elections would be taken at the next meeting, UNSMIL said, without giving a date.

The talks came six weeks after the failure of negotiations held in Switzerland between the 75 participants from all sides gathered for the Libyan Political Dialogue Forum.

UNSMIL acknowledged the failure of that session after four days, due to a lack of consensus.

Libya was plunged into chaos after dictator Muammar Gaddafi was toppled and killed in a 2011 NATO-backed uprising.

Two rival administrations later emerged, backed by a complex patchwork of militias, mercenaries and foreign powers.

Under a UN-backed ceasefire agreed last October, an interim administration was established in March to prepare for polls on December 24.

The deal was widely hailed as “historic” at the time, but divisions have since resurfaced, raising doubts that elections can go ahead as planned.

    Source:
  • AFP